How to Get Out of your Lease

Do security problems justify breaking a lease?

Q: I moved into an apartment in Ohio back in April 2007. I asked all the questions about safety, maintenance and security. I was told that the property had no problems in over two years. I was also told that the gates to the parking lot were down every night at midnight. The manager continued to state that the main doors to the buildings were designed as a safety measure and people would have to buzz in to gain access to the building.

Things seemed to be okay until July 2007. On July 1st my car was broken into in my carport in the parking lot. I can understand random acts, but when I went to the police to file a report I learned that many break-ins had been occurring in this area. The police officer even told me that a man was almost beaten to death last summer in that parking lot.
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Quiet Enjoyment and the Code Inspector

You may have noticed a clause in your lease agreement which talks about your right to “quiet enjoyment.” What this means is that the landlord will act in such a manner that no one can come in and displace you from the rented premises during the time that you are paying the rent there.

But if the landlord does not have the place up to code, and you call the code inspector and the code inspector cites the landlord for several violations, the landlord will have to bring the place up to code. If the landlord does not bring the place up to code, the the code inspector could post a 24 hour notice to vacate upon the rented premises, and then have you and your things tossed out the next day. If this happens, this would be a breach of the “quiet enjoyment” clause of the lease agreement on the part of the landlord.

Once you can show that the landlord has breached the lease agreement, then this absolves you of the duty to pay further rent on the lease.

So calling the code inspector may be one way to get out of your lease, but you should be warned that it might happen sooner (24 hours) than you think. So be ready to go if you summon the code inspector out to your place.

You can read up on other ways to get out of your lease agreement read more here.

Breaking a lease because landlord failed to install furnace

Question: My sister would like to break her lease based on failure of her landlord to make certain improvements. My sister moved into a place that was being renovated with the impression that the landlord was going to put in a heater and a kitchen sink. After moving in and signing a 6 month lease, the landlord said he was not going to put in a furnace and never did put in a kitchen sink. She has been doing dishes in the bath tub. Anyways, she is moving and the land lord is refusing to return the security deposit. Is this legal if the lease states that he was going to install a furnace? There are 2 toddlers in this house. Can my sister break her lease?

Answer: In Ohio (many other states have similar statutory protections requiring the landlord to maintain appliances like furnaces), if the lease requires the landlord to install a new furnace, then the landlord’s failure to do so will entitle the tenant to the protections of Ohio Revised Code Section 5321.07 (one of which is to break her lease). In other words, the failure to install the new furnace would be treated as a failure to remedy defects at the apartment. A tenant should provide the landlord with written notice of the condition to be remedied (lack of furnace) and deliver it in a manner that she can prove that the landlord received the written notice. If the landlord does not resolve the problem within 30 days or within a reasonable amount of time (whichever is shorter) then the tenant can escrow rent with the local clerk of courts, sue to compel the landlord to remedy the problem, or terminate (break) the lease provided the problem warrants lease termination. I would also think that the tenant could sue the landlord for breach of lease and attempt to recover the difference between the rent she paid and the actual value of the apartment without a furnace and without a sink.

Learn about all the options you have for getting out of your lease here.

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How to get out of your lease

Search inside “How to Get out of your Lease”!

How to get out of your lease

by Eric E. Willison, Esq. and

Andrew J. Ruzicho II, Esq.

List Price: $19.95

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Breaking a lease - rerenting questions

Question: My husband got a job transfer to another state. We were in a 1 year lease that was to end 11/06. We moved out on 9/15/06 and broke our lease early. We spoke with the landlord as soon as we knew of the move - 3 weeks before. (By the way our landlord resides in KS not in OH.) After some back and forth negotiating, they finally agreed to let us out of the lease when they found a new tenant to take over.
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Trying to break your lease - obtain ammunition first.

Are you looking to get out of your lease? You may want to begin by gathering all your ammunition first because landlords are not likely to just let you out of your lease. I recommend assembling a document trail for any dispute that you have with your landlord about your tenancy. For example, if your landlord has failed to make repairs at your apartment, it sure would be helpful to have a half dozen letters that you wrote to the landlord describing the repairs needed and asking him to make them.

Constructive Eviction Weakened by Continued Tenancy

If you stay too long in an apartment that you think is unfit for habitation, you can hurt your chances of arguing constructive eviction and breach of the warranty of habitability.

In the case of Bogner v. Titleist Club, LLC, 2006 Ohio App. LEXIS 6904 (December 29, 2006) Wood Co. App. No. WD-06-039, the tenants leased an apartment on August 1, 2001. Within two weeks after moving in, many items in the apartment needed repairs, including a broken patio door, broken light fixture, unlevel cupboard shelves, Read the story »

Interpreting a lease agreement

Question: I have a clause in my lease agreement in Ohio which allows me to terminate the lease early so long as I give 45 days’ notice to my landlord. My landlord says that he won’t honor this clause and insists that if I leave early he will sue me. What are my rights?

Answer: If the matter goes to a court, the court will read the lease as it is written and enforce this clause. Even if the lease clause is ambiguous, so long as your interpretation of the ambiguity is reasonable, the lease will be construed by the court against the drafter (meaning that the intepretation of the person who drafted it will lose out). This is justified because the drafter (usually the landlord) was in the best position to say what he meant, yet failed to speak clearly on the issue.

Learn about all the options you have for getting out of your lease here.